


I Can Hear Your Heart Beating

by beautifulEnmity



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Childhood Friends, Dancing, Fluff, Goddess Tower (Fire Emblem), Hugging, Kissing, Love Confessions, M/M, Tsundere Felix Hugo Fraldarius, slight spoilers for their A+ support, there is one (1) kiss
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-21
Updated: 2020-02-21
Packaged: 2021-02-28 04:33:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,346
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22837870
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/beautifulEnmity/pseuds/beautifulEnmity
Summary: Felix hates that he is forced to attend the ball when he could use the time to train and Sylvain takes it upon himself to show Felix how fun a ball can be-Garreg Mach Ball + Goddess Tower scenes for these two dorks
Relationships: Felix Hugo Fraldarius/Sylvain Jose Gautier
Comments: 2
Kudos: 89





	I Can Hear Your Heart Beating

The Garreg Mach Ball was about the biggest waste of time that Felix could think of. The hours he could have spent training or resting or doing literally anything else, were cruelly robbed from him by being forced to attend this ridiculous show of etiquette and courtesy. He had argued with the professor about it before, demanding to be allowed to train instead, but Byleth had just given him a sympathetic look and said that it was out of his hands. In lieu of an answer Felix had stormed off to train his frustration away.

He knew it wasn’t the professor's fault, that the order had probably come from higher up, maybe even Rhea herself, but that didn’t mean he wasn't angry about it. It seemed incredibly unsafe to have everyone gather in one place in the current situation and even more hazardous that so many things could go unnoticed in all the commotion. There was no way that the knights would be able to keep an eye on everyone and everything with that much going on. To him it seemed like an all-around bad idea, but either non one else realised it or they were ignoring it.

Of course he also had his own reasons for wanting the ball to be cancelled or at least be allowed to not attend, but his concerns for safety and the actual benefit of it were real nonetheless.

In the end there was nothing he could do as the day of the celebration came closer and closer and then he was swept up in a wave of excitedly chattering students and was forced into the ballroom.

By now it had already been at least two hours since the ball had started, and each additional second made Felix more and more irritable. At first, he had declined offers to dance with an at least acceptable level of politeness, but that had quickly turned to simple, clipped “no”s before he was outright glaring at anyone who even dared to approach him. Finally, people seemed to have taken the hint and no one had asked him for a dance in at least half an hour. He was just glad that Ingrid seemed to be busy somewhere else or otherwise she may have forced him into at least one dance just because it was ‘expected of the heir of the Fraldarius household’, as she had put it. He knew that she just wanted him to behave properly but bringing her knightly ideals into it was definitely not going to convince Felix.

He just hoped that the excitement would die down soon so that he would be able to leave without drawing too much attention to himself. Everyone seemed rather occupied at the moment, but he wasn’t going to risk getting caught by Hanneman or, even worse, Seteth, for leaving when he had already endured several hours of this.

So now he was leaning with one shoulder against the wall, arms crossed, observing the teachers and trying to figure out if they were busy enough to keep them from noticing him slipping away when he felt a hand come to rest gently on his arm.

“May I have this dance?”

Felix was snapped out of his thoughts by the sudden question and he spun around, curse already on his tongue for whomever had thought it a good idea to approach him, but the words died in his throat when he came face to face with unruly locks of bright ginger hair and chocolate brown eyes twinkling mischievously.

“Sylvain.” Was all that came out instead. His voice sounded less hostile than he had intended but he could blame that on being caught by surprise.

“The one and only!” Sylvain replied with a wink, raising his offered hand a bit higher. “So, what do you say?”

Felix needed a second to piece together what was happening, but when it clicked, he narrowed his eyes at the other.

“What are you playing at?”

“I was just asking you for a dance,” came the answer, Sylvain not sounding deterred in the slightest, a hint of amusement in his voice.

“Why?” Felix asked, arms crossing over his chest.

“Because I want to.” The amusement was still audible, only deepening the scowl that had made it onto Felix’ face.

“Come on, don’t leave me hanging, everyone is staring already,” Sylvain tried again, and with a quick glance around, Felix noticed that they were attracting the looks of more and more people, the feeling of being watched prickling uncomfortably on Felix' skin. There seemed to be no other way out of this situation without calling the attention of even more people and Felix let out a heavy sigh as he took the offered hand.

“Fine, but I’m leading,” he grumbled, trying to ignore the infuriating smirk that seemed to have settled permanently on Sylvain’s face.

“Sure, sure, as you wish, princess.”

Felix gave the hand he was holding a hard squeeze, delighting in the way that Sylvain’s expression took on a rather pained quality. “Okay, got it, no pet names,” he conceded immediately, letting out a sigh of relief when Felix loosened the death grip on his hand.

They approached the dance floor and in a matter of seconds they were among the dancing couples, one of Felix' hands coming to rest on Sylvain’s hip and the other adjusting at their side almost on instinct, years of noble training springing into effect. They fell into the rhythm of the music just as easily, executing the steps almost flawlessly.

“I didn’t know you were so good at being led through a dance,” Felix remarked, genuine curiosity mixing with mocking for his friend. Sylvain’s eyes seemed to light up at that. “Oh, I’m very good at many things.”

Felix decided to ignore the accompanying wink and innuendo, opting for rolling his eyes instead of gracing it with a response. Sylvain seemed to be in way too good of a mood, but then again, they were currently in exactly his field of expertise. Navigating through social gatherings came as easy to Sylvain as it was hard for Felix. He just didn’t have time for all the idle chit chat and fake compliments and even less for dancing and it showed. It was amazingly annoying how gracefully Sylvain seemed to navigate through any type of conversation – up until he tried flirting with one of the girls of course. Felix was never good at any of that, a fact which Sylvain was well aware of, so the reason why he had pulled him out onto the dance floor was beyond him.

“Why did you force me into this dance anyway,” he asked, eyes narrowing as he watched the smile on Sylvain’s face twitch. “I know it’s not just because you felt like it.”

“Well, you looked about ready to bolt and I couldn’t let you earn the wrath of our dear professor for leaving early.”

“I wasn't leaving,” Felix snapped, a bold-faced lie, he had been seconds from slipping away since the teachers had seemed distracted enough when Sylvain had approached him. Not that he needed to know that.

“I just don’t want to waste my time with this when we could be doing much more useful and important things like-"

“Training?” Sylvain supplied with a smirk that Felix would do just about anything to wipe off his face by now. His silence seemed to be answer enough for Sylvain who just continued on, ignoring the death glare that he was being fixed with.

“Felix, this is supposed to be fun! When was the last time you actually had fun?”

“Our definition of ‘fun' are very incompatible. _I_ have fun _training_.”

Sylvain pulled a face at that, like he wasn't expecting that answer, although by now they were both aware intimately of what the other liked or disliked.

“I think you need to broaden your horizons! Experience new things that are _actually_ fun,” Sylvain said, expertly dodging the kick that Felix had intended to crush the other’s foot with, while still making sure they stayed on rhythm. If Felix hadn’t been so annoyed, he might have been a little impressed.

“And the fun you are talking about is forcing me to dance with you?” Felix snapped instead, clear disdain colouring his words. “If so, it’s not working because I’m not having fun.”

He saw the moment the challenge flashed through Sylvain’s eyes and there was a fraction of a section in which something akin to regret settled in his heart before they fell out of the steps of the dance as he was spun away from Sylvain. The change came so unexpectedly that he lost his balance as he was turned around and he would have tripped and fallen if Sylvain hadn’t been there to catch him. There now was a hand on his hip and one of his own gripped by Sylvain as he was pulled up against him, way too close to be appropriate for the ball they were attending. His brain only registered that Sylvain was now the one leading them when they fell back into the steps of a new dance.

The surprise had stolen the breath from his lungs and he could only stare at Sylvain in disbelief as he was forced to mirror the steps of a dance that was too fast for the music that was playing and also one he was entirely unfamiliar with. The boy in question shot him a wink before pulling him even closer, the hand that had been on his waist now settling on his lower back.

It was entirely because of that that Felix finally managed to find his voice again.

“What are you doing?” he hissed through his teeth, ignoring the heat in his cheeks as he openly glared up at Sylvain who seemed entirely unconcerned with the situation.

“I’m showing you that dancing can be fun.” 

They stumbled along a few more steps until Felix managed to get used to being led through this dance, frown still etched into his face. From what he could tell, the dance was nothing like the ones he had been taught. It was full of fast steps and smooth turns and Felix was glad for his fast reflexes, honed through his daily sword training, through which he was at least able to avoid crashing them both onto the floor. He did still stumble a lot, feet getting caught in Sylvain's steps and he came close to considering tripping him on purpose just to see that amused smirk finally fall from his face. Sylvain falling would certainly catch the attention of a lot of people though and his desire to go unnoticed won out over his urge to retaliate.

He was just getting used to the steps when Sylvain readjusted his grip on Felix and before he could comprehend what was about to happen, he was suddenly pulled much closer toward Sylvain. His knees buckled, unable to support his weight at the angle and he let out a startled gasp as he fell backwards eyes shooting up and being met with that infuriating smirk and a look in his eyes that seemed all too pleased with himself, just as Sylvain’s arms caught him around his waist and shoulder.

Adrenaline was pumping through him at an alarming rate as his breathing caught up with him again, unable to do anything but stare at Sylvain as he was held completely at his mercy. It took him a few tries but he finally found enough of his voice to press out a scratchy “if you drop me, I’ll kill you” that was met with a laugh and Sylvain thankfully pulling him up again and into the, by now, at least slightly familiar steps of the dance.

Felix was rather frazzled for the few minutes that followed, not having the energy to glare at Sylvain like before, completely tied up in willing the blush away from his face, a fact which seemed to absolutely delight the other if his smile was anything to go by.

“What do you think, wanna get out of here?” He finally asked, a peace offering that Felix was more than eager to take. His heart was still beating rapidly and his cheeks were burning, whether from the dance or from something else, he couldn’t tell, but he managed a nod and with a few expertly executed steps they reached the edge of the dancefloor. There Sylvain finally let go of his waist and instead fell into a deep bow, still keeping a firm grip on Felix’ hand as he brought it up to his lips and pressed a soft kiss against his fingers with a wink. “Thank you for the dance.”

A few seconds passed where Felix just stared, wide eyed, caught completely by surprise, before the blush he had tried so desperately to supress came back with full force.

“ _Sylvain,_ ” he hissed, throat tight with embarrassment. His brain seemed to have taken a leave, as Sylvain actually had the nerve to start laughing at him, taking hold of his hand again as he pulled him out through the doors of the ball room and Felix could do nothing but follow him mindlessly.

By the time they were outside Sylvain had finally stopped laughing only to start again when Felix rounded on him, face still burning and demanded an explanation. “It was just much too good of an opportunity to tease you to pass it up.” Sylvain shrugged, the picture of nonchalance, a stark contrast to the way Felix’ body seemed to be screaming at him. He was sure that they caught the eyes of just about everyone at the ball as they left even though Sylvain kept insisting that it was half of them at most with a smile that made Felix’ knees week in a way that had nothing to do with the after effects of the dance. He was feeling hot, the gentle night breeze doing nothing to cool him down and there was a foreign thrumming deep in his chest that he didn’t know how to place. It made the corners of his mouth want to twitch up and he was trying his hardest to keep his expression neutral and the blush from returning. Sylvain seemed to be oblivious to his internal struggles as they walked together along the deserted monastery paths in comfortable silence.

Felix was too occupied with his thoughts, trying to make sense of what exactly was going on with himself, so that he didn’t notice where they were going until Sylvain stopped beside him and he stopped on instinct too. Somehow, they had arrived at the Goddess Tower and Felix turned towards Sylvain with a disbelieving look.

“Sylvain,” his voice was strained and the thrumming inside his chest only got more insistent, “Why are we here?”

Sylvain turned towards him and for the first time this evening his expression wasn't happy or teasing but something that seemed to be more thoughtful.

“You probably heard that rumour about the Goddess Tower, right? Where two people who make a wish here it will come true?” He gave Felix a smile that caught him so off guard that he only nodded in response.

“I just thought it would be nice,” Sylvain continued, leaning over the parapet looking at Felix from the corner of his eyes. “Maybe we could wish for something?” There was something hidden just beneath the surface of Sylvain’s words but Felix' brain just refused to comprehend what was going on. 

“I – yes, what do you want to wish for?” He felt his cheeks burn at the stutter. He was not someone who stuttered, but it seemed like his tongue didn’t agree. Sylvain noticed, if the twitching of his mouth was any indication, but mercifully he decided not to comment on it.

“Do you remember that promise we made when we we’re kids?”

It took a second for him to connect the dots, but then he was all of a sudden taken back in time. Back to the open fields surrounding his childhood home where the both of them used to play until the sun was starting to set. He remembered that particular moment in such detail that it startled even himself, the sensation of lying on the soft grass, feeling the last rays of sun warming his skin, fingers locked together as they made a promise to stay together until they died together. They had been so young then, the whole concept of death still being something they had no personal connection to. 

A sound made its way through Felix throat, something between a sigh and a sob and a sharp jolt of embarrassment followed after. He was usually much more in control of his reactions.

“I do remember,” he finally managed to press out, despite the tightness in his throat, voice going rough around the edges. There was really no way that he could have been prepared for the smile that bloomed on Sylvain's face at his answer. Startled and genuine, as if he wasn’t expecting Felix to remember it.

“Oh - I - of course you do,” he stuttered, cheeks dusted with pink, seeming genuinely flustered. His reaction was so at odds with the way Sylvain usually acted, with the way he had acted up until a few moments ago, that Felix felt heat rising to his cheeks as well.

“What are you getting all surprised for, as if I would forget,” he tried to deflect, the slight tremor in his voice making it sound less severe than he intended to.

It seemed that the situation had them both flung ways out of their comfort zone. Both he and Sylvain were used to control their expressions, Felix opting for neutral or scowling most of the time, while Sylvain was all fake smiles and empty compliments. But now they were both slightly cracked, starting to fall open and it was terrifying. Felix was more open with Sylvain than with anyone but whatever was happening right now went beyond that and he could feel it with every cell of his being. 

“I thought we could wish for that promise to come true,” Sylvain finally said and Felix couldn’t help but notice the open vulnerability in his voice. Perhaps he had grown used to the way Sylvain behaved at the monastery; the shallow talks and smiles, and had started to forget that there was so much more beneath it. Sylvain inclined his head towards him, hopeful smile lighting up his face in a way that no talk with some girl from town ever did, and there was just no way that Felix could do anything other than agree with him.

“That would be... nice.”

The silence hung between them for several seconds, a fragile thing, so easy to break, and Felix tried his best to pretend he didn’t feel the way Sylvain stared at him. He couldn’t bring himself to meet his eyes, he felt much too open for that. As if one deep look into his eyes would unearth everything he kept buried beneath his exterior.

He was so caught up in avoiding looking at Sylvain that he didn’t notice him stretching out his hand towards him until he felt the warm press of fingers against the back of his own hand. He flinched hard, eyes snapping up on instinct and meeting Sylvain's wide-eyed gaze, as he pulled his hand back a few inches. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you,” he said quietly, earnest, hand still outstretched in an open gesture. An invitation. He held Felix’ gaze as he continued and Felix just couldn’t look away from the light that burned in those deep brown eyes. “Let's make the promise like when we were kids.” He extended his pinky finger out and the amused snort came naturally to Felix.

“Really?” He asked, smile in place as he extended the pinky finger of his own hand and curled it around the other's, fitting as perfectly together as when they were kids. He watched the way that Sylvain’s smile went soft around the edges, skin around his eyes crinkling with the motion. And really, Felix seemed to have forgotten how beautiful a genuine smile looked on Sylvain, as he felt the breath catch in his throat. 

“I, Sylvain Jose Gautier, promise that I will be together with you until we die together.” His smile remained in place, but there was something else beneath it too, a sincerity and intensity that threw Felix just as much off balance as Sylvain’s actual words did.

“That’s not how it went,” he managed weakly and Sylvain laughed, a beautiful sound that nestled itself right beside Felix’ wildly beating heart.

“I know, but I do think that it needed to be slightly amended. After all were not kids anymore, are we?”

This time Felix caught the meaning and open question in Sylvain’s words. The choice that he had been given.

There was no doubt in his mind that, should Felix decide to refuse the amendment to the promise, they would be able to go back to the way things were before without Sylvain complaining. But if he agreed there was the promise of something _more_. Something _deeper_.

It wasn't a hard decision. Not with the way his blood was pumping, heart beating fast, similar to the sensation before a promising fight. Not with the way that seeing Sylvain actually smile made him want to smile right back.

He tightened the grip on Sylvain's finger.

“I, Felix Hugo Fraldarius,” he swallowed around the name, the formality of it, but he would grant Sylvain this one thing. “Promise that I will be together with you until we die together.” He felt sort of tight as he finished, stuffed so full to emotions that were usually kept at a safe and manageable distance, which seemed to now press against his skin, grown too big for him to control anymore.

His eyes found Sylvain's and he felt his hand tremble at the way he looked at him. He had often read the phrase “looking at someone like they hung the moon and the stars” in those awful romance novels that Ashe had made him read, but that was not how Sylvain looked at him.

Sylvain looked at him like he was the only thing that mattered at this moment. Like he was the entire world, starry eyed and caught off guard and Felix had never seen anything more beautiful.

He didn’t realise he had leaned forward, didn’t know what he was about to do until his lips brushed against Sylvain’s.

There was a startled second in which neither of them reacted and then Sylvain kissed him back, gentle and feather light, almost as if he was afraid Felix would stop if he was any more forceful. The kiss lasted only a few seconds before Felix pulled back, face burning as the reality of his actions caught up to him. He opened his mouth to say something, anything, but he was at a completely loss. He eyed Sylvain who seemed to be frozen, just looking at Felix’ dilemma before he finally moved, bringing one hand up to touch against his lips. Then his gaze found Felix’ and it was like waves crashing against beach, a sudden release of tension, as Sylvain started to smile and then, laugh.

A strangled sound of indignation was all Felix managed as he pushed Sylvain away and turned his face to the side, burning hotter than ever, eyebrows drawing together. It took him several seconds of watching Sylvain, who was now almost doubled over laughing, before he realised that he wasn’t being laughed at but rather that Sylvain just didn’t seem able to contain his elation inside his body. Once he realised that, the difference seemed glaringly obvious. Sylvain’s laughs were high and breathy, sounding almost startled and there was no teasing or mockery in his smile, just pure, unfiltered joy and affection that Felix couldn’t recall ever having seen on his friend’s face.

It took him a few tries to reign his laughter back in and Felix took the time to try and fail to keep his lips from curving into a smile as he watched. The crushing hug he was pulled into when Sylvain finally finished laughing caught him by surprise although in retrospect it really shouldn’t have. Sylvain was a tactile person on a normal day and right now he seemed almost starved for any kind of contact with Felix. Although there was not much opportunity to complain with his face pressed against Sylvain’s shoulder and even if there had been, he didn’t think he actually would have complained. It felt sort of nice, being like this. He could feel the elevated rate of Sylvain’s breathing through the movement of his chest and the way his heart seemed to want to break free of its confines based on how quickly it was beating.

Softly, hesitantly, Felix brought his hands up high on Sylvain’s back and pressed them gently against the muscles there. A shudder went through Sylvain at that and his hug got even tighter, hands fisting into Felix’ uniform. They stayed like this for what felt like an eternity, but when Sylvain gently pulled back and Felix could see the night sky again, it seemed like nothing much had changed.

“Felix, I,“ Sylvain swallowed, a hand coming up to cup Felix’ cheek and for once Felix didn’t feel like he wanted to shrug it off. “I wanted to do that for so long,” he finally said, voice as raw as Felix felt at that moment.

“Then why didn’t you, you idiot?” The barely hidden affection in his voice turning the insult into something completely different.

“Would you have let me?” Sylvain asked back, a hint of the teasing smirk back on his lips.

Felix didn’t dignify that with an answer. They both knew that the way he leaned his head on Sylvain’s shoulder again was more of an admittance than anything he would have let pass over his lips.

**Author's Note:**

> I love these two and their A+ support and paired ending got me good :,)
> 
> Feel free to share your thoughts on this, I appreciate every comment!


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